2017 MHCC annual report now available

The 2017 Mental Health Complaints Commissioner annual report has now been tabled in Parliament.

Our annual report highlights a number of key findings for the 2016–17 financial year, in particular the 73 service improvement actions taken by Victorian public mental health services as outcomes of the complaints process and the introduction of individual complaints reports for services.

Commissioner Lynne Coulson Barr said that it was positive to see a continued focus on complaints as a way to identify quality and safety issues, and drive positive change and improvements in individual mental health services and the system as a whole.

The report also highlights the establishment of the MHCC’s Advisory Council, and the commencement of the MHCC’s first major strategic project.

Other key findings and information tabled in the report include the following:

1,756 new enquiries and complaints made to the MHCC

281 matters being dealt with at any one time, on average

43 per cent of new enquiries and complaints raised concerns about treatment, 32 per cent raised concerns about communication, consultation and information, 19 per cent raised concerns about staff behaviour, competence and professional conduct

Other frequently occurring issues in 2016–17 included specific issues about medication (14 per cent), access to services (12 per cent), discharge and transfer arrangements (11 per cent), and environment, personal safety and management of the facility (eight per cent)

95 per cent of complaints were closed with positive outcomes achieved through MHCC processes and/or direct resolution actions by services

100 per cent of services provided local complaints reports

1,420 people involved in our education and engagement activities including consumers, families, carers, service staff and other stakeholders

4 formal recommendations to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on systemic policy and practice issues, which included improved guidance for shared care arrangements, discharge planning, and access to disability services for mental health consumers

The full report is now available for download, as well as our highlights document, which provides a high level summary of our achievements over the past year.

We invite you to visit our first ever interactive online report at http://mhcc2017.com.au/, and take a moment to explore our work in: